The 1976 Firecracker 400 was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series race that took place on July 4, 1976, at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. Ticket prices for this race ranged from $8 ($42.84 when adjusted for inflation) to $30 ($160.63 when adjusted for inflation).[3]
Race report
There were 40 drivers on the grid; all were American-born males except for Janet Guthrie.[2] Buddy Arrington was first out due to ignition troubles before the start of the first lap out of the 160 laps.[2][4] A. J. Foyt won the pole position with a speed of 183.090 miles per hour (294.655 km/h) while the average speed of the race was 160.966 miles per hour (259.050 km/h).[2][5]
Cale Yarborough defeated David Pearson by eight seconds in front of an audience of 40,000 people.[2] Two cautions (for 14 laps) and 41 different lead changes made the race two hours and twenty-nine minutes long.[2][5] The green flag was waved at 10:00 A.M.
The winner of the race received $22,215 ($118,947.68 when adjusted for inflation) while the last place finisher went home with $1,310 ($7,014.25 when adjusted for inflation).[2][4] Notable crew chiefs for this race included Billy Hagan, Junie Donlavey, Buddy Parrott, Jake Elder, Harry Hyde, Dale Inman, Bud Moore, Sterling Marlin, Herb Nab and Tim Brewer.[6]
The race was run on America's 200th birthday and was the site of Dick Skillen's best career finish of 17th. This race was the first career finish for Bill Elliott.[2]
Buck and Buddy Baker both exited the race on lap 32, as the 57-year-old elder champion made his final Daytona start.[2]
Qualifying
| Grid[2] | No. | Driver | Manufacturer | Owner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 28 | A.J. Foyt | Chevrolet | Hoss Ellington |
| 2 | 11 | Cale Yarborough | Chevrolet | Junior Johnson |
| 3 | 43 | Richard Petty | Dodge | Petty Enterprises |
| 4 | 2 | Bobby Allison | Mercury | Roger Penske |
| 5 | 72 | Benny Parsons | Chevrolet | L.G. DeWitt |
| 6 | 71 | Dave Marcis | Dodge | Nord Krauskopf |
| 7 | 21 | David Pearson | Mercury | Wood Brothers |
| 8 | 14 | Coo Coo Marlin | Chevrolet | H.B. Cunningham |
| 9 | 41 | Grant Adcox | Chevrolet | Herb Adcox |
| 10 | 48 | James Hylton | Chevrolet | James Hylton |
Failed to qualify: Sam Sommers (#27) and Jerry Mabie (#34)[7]
Finishing order
| POS[8] | ST | # | DRIVER | SPONSOR / OWNER | CAR | LAPS | MONEY | STATUS | LED | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 11 | Cale Yarborough | Holly Farms (Junior Johnson) | Chevrolet | 160 | 22215 | running | 71 | 185 |
| 2 | 7 | 21 | David Pearson | Purolator (Wood Brothers) | Mercury | 160 | 13615 | running | 1 | 175 |
| 3 | 4 | 2 | Bobby Allison | CAM 2 (Roger Penske) | Mercury | 160 | 13245 | running | 64 | 170 |
| 4 | 1 | 28 | A.J. Foyt | Gilmore (Hoss Ellington) | Chevrolet | 159 | 7440 | running | 6 | |
| 5 | 6 | 71 | Dave Marcis | K & K Insurance (Nord Krauskopf) | Dodge | 157 | 7810 | running | 0 | 155 |
| 6 | 8 | 14 | Coo Coo Marlin | Cunningham-Kelley (H.B. Cunningham) | Chevrolet | 157 | 6300 | running | 0 | 150 |
| 7 | 5 | 72 | Benny Parsons | King's Row Fireplace (L.G. DeWitt) | Chevrolet | 156 | 6630 | running | 0 | 146 |
| 8 | 30 | 90 | Dick Brooks | Truxmore (Junie Donlavey) | Ford | 156 | 5170 | running | 0 | 142 |
| 9 | 15 | 05 | David Sisco | David Sisco | Chevrolet | 153 | 4660 | running | 1 | 143 |
| 10 | 22 | 22 | Ricky Rudd | Al Rudd Auto Parts (Al Rudd) | Chevrolet | 152 | 2590 | running | 0 | 134 |
| 11 | 29 | 52 | Jimmy Means | Howard's Machine Shop (Bill Gray) | Chevrolet | 149 | 2390 | running | 0 | 130 |
| 12 | 34 | 3 | Richard Childress | Kansas Jack (Richard Childress) | Chevrolet | 148 | 4150 | running | 0 | 127 |
| 13 | 20 | 79 | Frank Warren | Native Tan (Frank Warren) | Dodge | 148 | 3940 | running | 0 | 124 |
| 14 | 28 | 36 | Bobby Wawak | J & B Corvette (John Gwinn) | Chevrolet | 148 | 2115 | running | 0 | 121 |
| 15 | 33 | 68 | Janet Guthrie | Kelly Services (Lynda Ferreri) | Chevrolet | 147 | 1570 | running | 0 | |
| 16 | 36 | 40 | D.K. Ulrich | Garden State Auto (J.R. DeLotto) | Chevrolet | 144 | 3530 | running | 0 | 115 |
| 17 | 31 | 78 | Dick Skillen | Goffco (Tom Goff) | Chevrolet | 143 | 1790 | running | 0 | 112 |
| 18 | 39 | 91 | Harold Miller | Bartow Paving (Harold Miller) | Chevrolet | 142 | 1690 | running | 0 | 109 |
| 19 | 38 | 10 | Bill Elliott | Sunny King (Bill Champion) | Ford | 141 | 3070 | running | 0 | 106 |
| 20 | 21 | 77 | Johnny Rutherford | Hy Gain (Johnny Ray) | Chevrolet | 139 | 1740 | rear end | 0 | |
| 21 | 25 | 26 | Jimmy Lee Capps | Sellers Automotive (David Lee Sellers) | Chevrolet | 132 | 1290 | running | 0 | 100 |
| 22 | 3 | 43 | Richard Petty | STP (Petty Enterprises) | Dodge | 126 | 5960 | engine | 1 | 102 |
| 23 | 32 | 61 | Joe Mihalic | Lou Viglione | Chevrolet | 125 | 1140 | running | 0 | 94 |
| 24 | 23 | 70 | J.D. McDuffie | Butler's (J.D. McDuffie) | Chevrolet | 122 | 2390 | engine | 0 | 91 |
| 25 | 13 | 47 | Bruce Hill | Howson Algraphy (Bruce Hill) | Chevrolet | 110 | 1990 | driveshaft | 0 | 88 |
| 26 | 10 | 48 | James Hylton | Hylton Engineering (James Hylton) | Chevrolet | 102 | 1815 | engine | 2 | 90 |
| 27 | 40 | 25 | Dick May | Don Robertson | Chevrolet | 81 | 1540 | rear end | 0 | 82 |
| 28 | 26 | 82 | Ferrel Harris | Rossmeyer (Ferrel Harris) | Dodge | 75 | 1015 | rear end | 0 | 79 |
| 29 | 18 | 19 | Tommy Gale | Belden Asphalt (Henley Gray) | Chevrolet | 70 | 990 | electrical | 0 | 76 |
| 30 | 9 | 41 | Grant Adcox | Adcox-Kirby (Herb Adcox) | Chevrolet | 67 | 965 | engine | 0 | 73 |
| 31 | 35 | 92 | Skip Manning | Stratagraph (Billy Hagan) | Chevrolet | 60 | 940 | electrical | 0 | 70 |
| 32 | 14 | 54 | Lennie Pond | Pepsi-Cola (Ronnie Elder) | Chevrolet | 48 | 1415 | engine | 0 | 67 |
| 33 | 11 | 12 | Neil Bonnett | Hawaiian Tropic (Neil Bonnett) | Chevrolet | 39 | 890 | wheel bearing | 0 | 64 |
| 34 | 16 | 24 | Cecil Gordon | Burger King (Cecil Gordon) | Chevrolet | 33 | 1360 | crash | 0 | 61 |
| 35 | 12 | 15 | Buddy Baker | Norris Industries (Bud Moore) | Ford | 32 | 3835 | engine | 14 | 63 |
| 36 | 24 | 18 | Buck Baker | Excuse Lounge (Joe Frasson) | Chevrolet | 32 | 830 | crash | 0 | 55 |
| 37 | 37 | 7 | Ed Negre | Dean Dalton | Chevrolet | 16 | 825 | electrical | 0 | 52 |
| 38 | 19 | 60 | Jackie Rogers | Red Dog's (Lou Viglione) | Chevrolet | 13 | 820 | overheating | 0 | 49 |
| 39 | 17 | 88 | Darrell Waltrip | Gatorade (DiGard Racing) | Chevrolet | 9 | 3815 | engine | 0 | 46 |
| 40 | 27 | 67 | Buddy Arrington | Sub-Tropic (Buddy Arrington) | Dodge | 0 | 1310 | ignition | 0 | 43 |
| Failed to qualify | ||||||||||
| POS | NAME | NBR | SPONSOR | OWNER | CAR | |||||
| Sam Sommers | 27 | M.C. Anderson Racing | M.C. Anderson | Chevrolet | ||||||
| Jerry Mabie | 34 | J-2 Racing | Jerry Mabie | Chevrolet | ||||||
Standings after the race
| Pos | Driver | Points[2] | Differential |
|---|---|---|---|
1 
|
Cale Yarborough | 2503 | 0 |
| 2
|
Benny Parsons | 2413 | -90 |
3 
|
Bobby Allison | 2331 | -172 |
4 
|
Richard Petty | 2303 | -200 |
| 5
|
Dave Marcis | 2060 | -443 |
| 6
|
Lennie Pond | 2031 | -472 |
| 7
|
Richard Childress | 1994 | -509 |
| 8
|
David Pearson | 1918 | -585 |
| 9
|
Buddy Baker | 1886 | -617 |
| 10
|
Frank Warren | 1798 | -705 |
References
- ^ 1976 Firecracker 400 weather information at The Old Farmers' Almanac
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Firecracker 400 racing information at Racing Reference
- ^ 1976 Firecracker Ticket Prices Archived 2012-03-28 at the Wayback Machine at Starport75.com
- ^ a b 1976 Firecracker 400 racing information Archived 2011-10-05 at the Wayback Machine at Driver Averages
- ^ a b 1976 Firecracker 400 racing information at Database Racing
- ^ 1976 Firecracker 400 crew chiefs at Racing Reference
- ^ Qualifying information at Racing Reference
- ^ "Race Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved 2021-05-31.
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